Vacuum cleaner attachment



VACUUM CLEANER ATTACHMENT Filed April 8, 1963 INVENTOR.

/4 F I 1:5-7 c/o/m P B/"uc/r 60 BY P1 5. 5 @622 ATTORNEYS United tatesThis invention relates to an attachment for use with a source of vacuumand more particularly to an attachment for a vacuum cleaner, by means ofwhich attachment material can be removed more effectively from a surfacebeing cleaned.

The vacuum cleaner attachment according to the invention has particularutility for removing water from a surface being washed. Such water isdirty and soapy and if not removed substantially completely, it willleave a residue on the surface. The new attachment substantiallycompletely removes the water and dries the surface by combining asqueegee and a vacuum.

One of the major problems with attachments of this type is to coordinateproperly the air drawn into the attachment and the action of thesqueegee blade, to achieve maximum water pickup. Usually the hose forthe source of vacuum is connected to the attachment at a point centrallylocated with respect to the squeegee blade so that more air is drawnpast the central portion of the blade than the ends. Hence, perhaps onlyone-third to two-thirds of the squeegee blade operates with maximumeffectiveness while the end portions of the blade, past which much lessair flows, will often leave a film of dirty water on the surface. Thismeans that the surface must be covered by the attachment with many extrastrokes; streaks of dirt will exist after the remaining water evaporatesand leaves the aqueous-borne dirt on the surface.

The attachment according to the invention controls the flow of air pastthe squeegee to the vacuum source more effectively than heretoforepossible to achieve the desired air flow. For this purpose, the upperlongitudinal edge of the squeegee blade has a plurality of notchestherein which control the flow of air past the blade by serving ineffect as orifices. The notches can be positioned along the edge of thesqueegee in any predetermined pattern to provide a uniform fiow orprovide a non-uniform flow with more air flowing past the ends of thesqueegee than past the center, for example.

The attachment can employ both the squeegee and a vacuum brush for useon rugs, upholstery, etc., with the squeegee extending below the brushso that it can be used with the brush in place. When the brush is to beused, however, the squeegee must be removed. For this purpose, theattachment according to the invention also incorporates a squeegee blademounting arrangement which enables the squeegee to be easily removed.The attachment incorporates pins in the ends of the attachment body,which pins are pivotally connected to the ends of the squeegee. Thesqueegee is held in such a manner that it can move slightly in atransverse direction, as well as pivot. In addition, at least one of thepins preferably is slidably supported in the attachment body and is heldin a rubber bumper extending around the attachment. The bumper is simplypulled out to withdraw the pin to remove the squeegee and yet hold thepin in the attachment at all times so it cannot be lost.

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It is, therefore, a principal object of the invention to provide avacuum attachment with more effective cleaning action.

Another object of the invention is to provide air flow control for asqueegee of a vacuum cleaner attachment to enable more effective pick upof water over the entire length of the squeegee.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a vacuum attachmentemploying a squeegee having a plurality of openings in an upper portionthereof to effectively control air flow past the squeegee.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a vacuum attachmentwith improved means for pivotally mounting a squeegee therein to enabletransverse movement of the squeegee and to facilitate removal of it.

Gther objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof,reference being made to the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is an end view in elevation of a vacuum cleaner attachmentembodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view in vertical cross section taken along the line 2-2 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the attachment;

FIG. 4 is a view in vertical cross section taken along the line 44 ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a detailed view in cross section taken along the line 55 ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a detailed view in cross section taken along the line 6-6 ofFIG. 3, but with the squeegee removed;

FlG. 7 is a somewhat schematic view in elevation of a slightly modifiedsqueegee; and

FIG. 8 is a somewhat schematic view in elevation of another slightlymodified squeegee.

In the preferred form, the vacuum cleaner attachment, indicated by thereference numeral it basically includes an attachment body 12, asqueegee l4, and a brush 16. The squeegee 14 is used to remove waterfrom a surface after it is washed or scrubbed and the brush 16 is usedto clean rugs, upholstery, etc. The squeegee 14 extends below the brushit? and can be used with the brush to in place. However, if the brush tois to be used, the squeegee blade 14 must first be removed.

The body lZ-includes a neck 18 extending rearwardly and forming aninternal groove 28 (FIG. 4) which receives projections of a vacuumcleaner hose to make a connection therewith, as is known in the art. Theneck 13 also forms a main exhaust passage 22 which communicates with anintake passage or mouth 24. The intake passage 24 is defined by frontand rear walls 26 and 23 (FIGS. 4 and 5), flared end walls 30 and 32,and an upper wall 34 diverging in opposite directions from the passage22.

The squeegee 14 is located in the intake passage 24 and includes aflexible squeegee blade 36 and a U-shaped metal holder 38. The blade 35partially extends into the holder and is aflixed by rivets or othersuitable means. The blade 36 and the metal holder 38 have tapered ends(FIG. 2) which are approximately at the same angle as the tapered endwalls 3% and 32 of the intake passage 24. The extreme ends of the blade36 extends to or beyond the ends of the attachment body 12 so that theblade can contact a floor surface at least to the ends of the body. Thisis extremely important in picking up a water on a surface near a wall orimmovable object, for example.

The blade 36 and the U-shaped holder 38 form recesses 40 (FIG. at eachend of the squeegee 14 to receive supporting pins 42 which are slidablysupported in bores 44 (see FIG. 6) at end portions 46 of the attachmentbody 12. The diameter of the pins 42 is less than the vertical height ofthe recesses 40 to enable limited transverse movement of the squeegee 14into and out of the intake passage 24. The squeegee 14 can then moveupwardly slightly as it swings back and forth through a verticalposition between forward and rearward slanted positions. Without suchmovement, the squeegee 14 would force the attachment 10 slightlyupwardly as it moves between the slanted positions and passes throughthe vertical position, in which it extends farthest below the attachmentbody 12.

The pins 42 have heads 48 (FIG. 6) which can be grasped to pull the pins42 outwardly and release the squeegee 14 so that the brush 16 can beused. The heads 48 of the pins 42 preferably are received in a rubberbumper 50 which is held in a peripheral groove 52 in the attachment body12. If the bumper 50 is hollow, as shown, the pin heads 48 can besnapped through appropriate holes in the wall of the bumper. If thebumper 50 is solid, then the heads 48 can be molded directly thereinwhen the bumpers are made. To withdraw the pin 42 in this instance, thebumper is grasped adjacent the pin head 48 and pulled outwardly. Afterthe squeegee 14 is removed, the bumper 50 can be released and the pin 42again extended into the intake passage 24. With this arrangement, thepins 42 always remain in the attachment body 12 and cannot be lost ormisplaced, nor do they interfere at all with the operation of the brush16. While the attachment is shown with both of the pins 42 beingremovable, one of them can be fixed, if desired.

The brush 16 can be of any suitable design and is affixed in a rearrecess 54 by any suitable means, The recess 54 does not communicatedirectly with the intake passage 24 but, rather, the air movement isestablished in front of the brush 16 through the passage 24.

For the squeegee 14, air movement is established through the passage 24on both sides of the squeegee 14. When the attachment 10 is being movedtoward the rear and the squeegee blade 36 is in its forward slantedposition, as shown in FIG. 6, then most of the air is drawn past therear face of the blade 36, thereby more effectively picking up watercollected by the blade. This occurs because the front surface of theblade 36 is in contact or substantially so with the front wall 26 of thepassage 24, whereas some space usually exists between the upper edge ofthe U-shaped holder 38 and the rear wall 28 of the intake passage 24.Similarly, when the squeegee 14 is in its rearward position (not shown)as the attachment 1% moves forwardly, the blade 36 contacts the rearwall 28 and most of the air flows past the front of the blade 36, againpicking up water collected by the blade.

With the exhaust passage 22 located centrally of the longitudinal extentof the squeegee 14, there is a strong tendency for most of the air to bedrawn past the central portion of the squeegee 14, thereby reducing theelfectiveness of the end portions. This is particularly true of thespecific squee ee 14 wherein the tapered ends of the blade 36 extendbeyond the tapered end walls 30 and 32 of the intake passage 24. It hasbeen discovered that the air drawn through the intake passage 24 to theexhaust passage 22 can be distributed uniformly along the blade 14 byforming a plurality of openings or notches 56 in the upper longitudinaledge of the squeegee 14 and specifically in the U-shaped metal holder36. These openings tend to act as orifices in combination with eitherthe front wall 26 or the rear wall 28, depending upon which directionthe squeegee 14 is slanting, and thereby effectively control the airflow, spreading it out and reducing the concentration at the centralportion of the squeegee 14. The openings can assume other shapes such asbeing in the form of holes 58 (FIG. 7) or 60 (FIG. 8) drilled throughthe holder 38 rather than notches. It is only important that theopenings be in that part of the squeegee 14 which is located across theintake passage 24 with the squeegee 14 in either its forward or rearwardslanted position.

Rather than locating the openings 56, or the holes 58 or 60, uniformlyalong the metal holder 38, they can be positioned in a different manner.For example, the holes 58 can be located more closely together near theends of the metal holder 38 (FIG. 7) to cause more air to be drawn pastthe end portions of the squeegee 14 to assure that the ends of theblades 36 will pick up water effectively even though they extendsomewhat beyond the ends of the intake passage 24. For the same purpose,the openings 60 can be larger at the ends of the squeegee 14 (FIG. 8).

Various modifications of the above described embodiment of the inventionwill be apparent to those skilled in the art, and it is to be understoodthat such modifications can be made without departing from the scope ofthe invention if they are within the spirit and tenor of theaccompanying claims.

What I claim is:

1. A vacuum cleaner attachment comprising a body having means for makinga connection with a vacuum cleaner hose connected to a source of vacuum,said body having a central exhaust passage therein for communicatingwith the source of vacuum, said body also having an intake passagecommunicating with said exhaust passage and having flared ends extendingtoward ends of said body, a squeegee mounted for pivotal movement insaid intake passage and extending beyond it, said squeegee having aflexible blade with a lower unbroken edge, said squeegee having aplurality of openings longitudinally thereof spaced above said unbrokenedge, said squeegee being movable between two slanted positions in eachof which positions said squeegee is transversely located with respect tosaid intake passage to at least partially restrict the flow of airthrough it by substantially contacting one side of said intake passageat the trailing side of said squeegee and by closely approaching theopposite side of said intake passage at the upper longitudinal edge ofsaid squeegee, whereby said openings influence the distribution of theflow of air through said intake passage.

2. An attachment according to claim 1 wherein said squeegee openingsconstitute notches positioned along the upper longitudinal edge of saidsqueegee.

3. An attachment according to claim 1 wherein said openings arepositioned uniformly along said squeegee.

4. An attachment according to claim 1 wherein said openings are moreclosely spaced near the ends of said squeegee than they are at thecentral portion thereof.

5. A vacuum cleaner attachment comprising a body having means for makinga connection with a vacuum cleaner hose connected to a source of vacuum,said body having a central exhaust passage therein for communicatingwith the source of vacuum, said body also having an intake passagecommunicating with said exhaust passage, a squeegee located partly insaid intake passage, a resilient bumper located around the periphery ofsaid attachment body, a pair of pins supported by the ends of saidattachment body and extending into end portions of said squeegee, atleast one of said pins being slidably received in a passage in thecorresponding one of said ends of said body, said one pin having a headlocated outside said pin passage and attached to said resilient bumper,whereby said one pin can be withdrawn from said squeegee by pulling saidbumper outwardly.

(References on following page) 5 References Cited by the Examiner2,716,773 2,893,046 UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,039,122 11/76 Leach 15-41 31O7387 7/09 Kindel 15369 4/10 Raymond et a1 15--401 2/12 Overholt 15405X 48 7/12 Hope 15-369 441175 3/32 Finnell 15-401 7G4042 5/39 Nelson15310 1 7/50 Norris 15401 X 10/52 Heftler 15-41 11/53 Smith 1541 6 9/55Meyerhoefer 15369 7/59 Thompson 15369 X 6/62 Birdsall 15369 X 10/63 Katt15401 X FOREIGN PATENTS 5/3 4 Denmark. 1/ 36 Great Britain. 4/58 GreatBritain.

WALTER A. SCHEEL, Primary Examiner.

1. A VACUUM CLEANER ATTACHMENT COMPRISING A BODY HAVING MEANS FOR MAKINGA CONNECTION WITH A VACUUM CLEANER HOSE CONNECTED TO A SOURCE OF VACUUM,SAID BODY HAVING A CENTRAL EXHAUST PASSAGE THEREIN FOR COMMUNICATINGWITH THE SOURCE OF VACUUM, SAID BODY ALSO HAVING AN INTAKE PASSGECOMMUNICATING WITH SAID EXHAUST PASSAGE AND HAVING FLARED ENDS EXTENDINGTOWARD ENDS OF SAID BODY, A SQUEEGEE MOUNTED FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT INSAID INTAKE PASSAGE AND EXTENDING BEYOND IT, SAID SQUEEGEE HAVING AFLEXIBLE BLADE WITH A LOWER UNBROKEN EDGE, SAID SQUEEGEE HAVING APLURALITY OF OPENINGS LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF SPACED ABOVE SAID UNBROKENEDGE, SAID SQUEEGEE BEING MOVABLE BETWEEN TWO SLANTED POSITIONS IN EACHOF WHICH POSITIONS SAID SQUEEGEE IS TRANSVERSELY LOCATED WITH RESPECT TOSAID INTAKE PASSAGE TO AT LEAST PARTIALLY RESTRICT THE FLOW OF AIRTHROUGHIT BY SUBSTANTIALLY CONTACTING ONE SIDE OF SAID INTAKE PASSAGE ATTHE TRAILING SIDE OF SAID SQUEEGEE AND BY CLOSELY APPROACHIGN THEOPPOSTIE SIDE OF SAID INTAKE PASSAGE AT THE UPPER LONGITUDINAL EDGE OFSAID SQUEEGEE, WHEREBY SAID OPENINGS INFLUENCE THE DISTRIBUTION OF THEFLOW OF AIR THROUGH SAID INTAKE PASSAGE.